Before you get a quote.

Mark the furniture, bedheads, bench seating and where the TV and desk will actually sit. Draw in the hot-water system, planned heat pumps, EV parking and possible solar cable route. A future cable path costs a lot less to plan while framing is open.

Send one current drawing revision, the lighting schedule if there is one, and the date linings start. Mark owner-supplied fittings separately so quotes can be compared.

Photograph the room from the doorway and the switchboard with its cover closed. For a renovation, show where finishes must stay. A photo helps us distinguish a straightforward replacement from work that needs access behind the wall.

Tell us what has changed, what works now and whether anything else is being replaced. If the job is urgent, ring the office. Leave damaged electrical equipment alone.

A hallway, closed doors and how you use the rooms change where the heat goes. A wall unit can suit one living space. A ducted layout can serve several rooms but needs routes for ducts, returns and service access. Fresh-air ventilation is a separate decision. If moisture is the concern, see SmartVent for existing homes and new builds.

Tell us which rooms are cold, when they are occupied and where noise matters. A floor plan helps us compare Mitsubishi Electric options and agree what the design covers.

Decide what each camera must see after dark, where Wi-Fi drops out and who needs footage. Allow for cabling, power at the network cabinet and owner access to recordings. For a new build, agree the cable routes while the walls are open.

Mark doors, gates, camera views and the router location on a rough plan. Tell us who will own the accounts and whether you need remote access. Keep passwords out of the enquiry.

Total kWh is a start. The time you use it matters more. Power for a dairy shed, workshop or home office in daylight has a different value from power exported when everyone is out. Winter shading and roof condition change the design.

Start with a recent bill and the site location. Include summer and winter bills or half-hour readings if available. We compare your daytime use, exports and work you could shift into daylight.

A clear patch of land is one part. Check winter shading, available supply, trench length, flood and stock exposure, access for machinery and how you’ll mow or graze around the rows. Soil and wind or snow conditions determine what holds the frames in place.

A map pin, a photo towards the winter sun, a bill and an approximate route back to the board are enough for a first conversation.

A compatible battery can charge from the grid and run selected loads later. For savings, compare the night-time charge cost after losses with the price of power you would otherwise buy. For outages, start with which circuits must run and for how long.

Use the tariff check with numbers from your bill. We can review winter usage, available backup power, equipment location and what a simpler change of plan might achieve.

Start with the kilometres you need back and how long you park. At home, overnight may be plenty. At a shared building or depot, charging several vehicles together can stress the supply. Load management and a staged cable route can change the price.

Give us parking and departure times, vehicle model and a photo of the closed board. Shared sites should identify who owns the bays and who will pay for the electricity.

List what absolutely must stay running. Refrigeration, security, servers, access systems and processes that cannot restart unattended all affect the shutdown window. Agree who can isolate, who authorises the interruption and who checks the restart.

Send the site hours, an existing single-line drawing if available, the proposed shutdown window and the site contact. For maintenance, identify repeat faults and who can grant access.

Clarify who owns excavation, ducts, draw pits, earthing, reinstatement, supply applications and as-builts. Access, live services and temporary works can alter the sequence even where the final installation looks simple.

Send the drawing revision, scope boundary, programme and tender closing date. If the design is still moving, identify what is provisional.

Decide where people walk, which areas need task lighting and whether a pump, gate or future shed needs power. Access for trenching and the position of paths or retaining walls may matter more than the fitting you choose.

A sketch of the boundaries and planned paving helps. Share where power is needed, what is being installed by others and when the ground will be open.

Give the lender an itemised quote. Ask what qualifies, when it must approve the work, what happens after any introductory term and the total repayments including fees. Ask specifically about battery storage without panels.

Apply to the lender directly. Leading can supply the electrical scope and quote. The lender decides eligibility.